Authoritarians can lose elections, but should we be less concerned?

By MICHAEL MEYER-RESENDE

BERLIN, 4. APR, 2024

This is the story you often hear: In the old days, the military, fascists or communist parties seized power, destroyed democracy and suppressed people's freedoms. But today it is different: Populist parties attack democracy from within, infiltrate its institutions, destroy its debates through disinformation and, once in office, refuse to relinquish power.

This story, however, does not hold up. Not just because military coups are on the rise again (some are talking of a coup epidemic in Africa). And not just because, as I have argued here, the term "populism" is analytically weak and politically counterproductive — let me use the term "soft authoritarians" instead.

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  Hybrid regimes should not be confused with a new variant of democracy that we should get used to – what many call "illiberal democracy". Their violations of democratic norms are serious, blatant and ongoing.

The story does not hold up because there are not many countries in Europe where soft authoritarians have come to power and are not giving up. Only Hungary and Serbia fit the description.

In Poland, soft authoritarians lost parliamentary elections last year. In Slovakia they lost elections in 2020 — but won again in the last parliamentary elections. In other countries, soft authoritarians have joined coalition governments without being able to cement themselves in power for the long term.

Last weekend, the Turkish opposition triumphed in mayoral elections across the country, a stinging rebuke to long-serving President Erdoğan (who is more of a hard authoritarian, but is also usually described as a 'populist').

What's wrong with them?

So, what's wrong with these soft authoritarians? Are they not as bad as they are made out to be? After all, they allow themselves to be defeated in elections. Putin would not do that; he has all serious opposition candidates killed or imprisoned.

Political scientists talk about hybrid regimes. They have the core features of democracies, such as regular elections with some competition, legal opposition and freedom of speech. At the same time, the rules are rigged and manipulated to ensure that elections are not really competitive.

Imagine a football team that can only play with nine players and the referee is an employee of the other team. You can still win the game, but it is much harder. Forget about equal chances.

A hybrid regime is attractive to a leader. You excite everyone with regular elections, the opposition is hopeful, change is in the air, but in the end, you win the elections again. The impression remains that your country is a democracy and that you are simply a very popular leader. This has worked well for Erdoğan, Orbán and Serbia's Vučic.

We could have a long discussion about whether such hybrid regimes represent a distinct, stable form of government — a third form of government alongside democracy and dictatorship — or whether there is simply a continuum between ideal democracy (which is nowhere to be found) and dictatorship, and some countries just happen to be somewhere in the middle.

The more important point is the distinction. Where on a continuum would we place certain political systems? Or how exactly would we define hybrid systems? Erdoğan's rule is far harsher and more repressive than Orbán's in Hungary. His regime might be better described as authoritarian, even if the opposition can win local elections.

But that does not mean Hungary is a democracy. The elite linked to the ruling FIDESZ party is not accountable to the Hungarian people. Elections are unfair and do not meet Hungary's commitments to the OSCE. The tax-funded state media is a propaganda channel for Orban and FIDESZ. It has become difficult to distinguish between party and state. Hungary's elections to the European Parliament in June will not be democratic.

In other words, hybrid regimes should not be confused with a new variant of democracy that we should get used to (what many call "illiberal democracy"; another unfortunate term). Their violations of democratic norms are serious, blatant and ongoing.

How to deal with this

What are the policy implications? First, once a state is on course to become, or is already entrenched as a hybrid regime, do not think that tinkering with this or that element will change anything. The EU made a big mistake recently by unfreezing up to €10.2 billion of funds for the Hungarian government, with most people assuming the money was paid in response to Orbán's blackmail over Ukraine support.

Second, if the EU wants to influence such states (be they member states or EU candidates), it needs to have its eyes on the ball all the time. It cannot afford to divide its efforts between different services, with one addressing hostile corporate takeovers by the ruling party and another with changing laws against civil society organisations. They are all connected parts of authoritarianism and corruption.

Third, our public debates should reflect the nature of these challenges. If we continue to operate with imprecise and misleading terms like populism or illiberalism, we obscure the challenge to democracy. We need to focus on the bottom line.

Prime Minister Meloni of Italy may support the EU line on Ukraine, but she has also proposed constitutional reforms that would lead to an extreme concentration of power in the prime minister. That is a democracy problem.

Hybrid regimes have no inherent core that prevents them from becoming full-fledged autocracies or returning to democracy through elections. It depends on many things, especially public opinion and the regional and international environment.

In democracy, as in security, the biggest risk for Europe is that Trump will be re-elected, emboldening soft and hard authoritarians alike. It is time to step up the pressure on hybrid regimes and pre-empt a Trump contagion in Europe.

AUTHOR BIO

Michael Meyer-Resende is the executive director of Democracy Reporting International, a non-partisan NGO in Berlin that supports political participation.

DISCLAIMER

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author's, not those of EUobserver.

Sailor’s remains identified 82 years after Pearl Harbour attack

Anthropological and dental analysis, as well as mitochondrial DNA analysis, was to identify Mr David Walker, a 19-year-old mess attendant third class from Norfolk, Virginia. 

PHOTO: NYTIMES

UPDATED
MAR 30, 2024

WASHINGTON – On Dec 7, 1941, the USS California, the flagship of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet, was moored on “battleship row” at Pearl Harbour when it was struck by Japanese torpedoes and bombs.

Officials were initially unable to identify all the 103 crew members who were killed, and the remains of 25 “unknowns” were buried in Hawaii.

But on March 28, officials announced that they had used advanced forensic technology to identify one of them as Mr David Walker, a 19-year-old mess attendant third class from Norfolk, Virginia.

“It is our duty to bring them home,” said Mr Sean Everette, a spokesman for the Defence POW/MIA Accounting Agency, or DPAA, whose mission is to find and return missing military personnel.

“It’s a promise fulfilled to the service member,” he said, adding that “we also owe it to the families to give them answers”.

Mr Walker, who attended high school in Portsmouth, Virginia, before he joined the navy, will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in September, officials said.

A marker signifying that he has been accounted for will be placed next to his name on the Walls of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.

His remains were identified in November, officials said, nearly 82 years after the attack on Pearl Harbour, and six years after the DPAA exhumed the remains of the 25 “unknowns” connected to the USS California.

Officials said the agency used anthropological and dental analysis to identify Mr Walker. Scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System also used mitochondrial DNA analysis.

As a mess attendant, Mr Walker, who was black, would have been responsible for running the ship’s galley. Mess attendants cooked, served food and cleaned dishes.

The DPAA identified Ms Cheryle Stone, 70, as Mr Walker’s next of kin. Ms Stone, who lives in Pennsylvania, said that Mr Walker was a cousin who died before she was born.

She thought about his mother, she said, and how hard it must have been for her to not know what had happened to her son.

“That had to be horrible,” Ms Stone said.

Mr Walker is one of five sailors from the USS California whose remains have been identified since 2018.

 NYTIMES

 

HRW calls for UN probe into Ethiopian army killings

By

 AFP

Human Rights Watch on Thursday called for the United Nations to investigate “war crimes” committed by the Ethiopian army in Amhara, a region that has been plagued by conflict.

The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, a public independent institution, estimated in February that at least 45 people  were killed on January 29 by government forces in Merawi city after clashes with local militia Fano.

According to testimonies collected by the New York-based rights group, after the Fano withdrew from Merawi, Ethiopian soldiers shot civilians on the streets as well as during house raids over a six-hour period.

“The soldiers also pillaged and destroyed civilian property,” HRW said in a statement.

It said the incident “was among the deadliest for civilians during the fighting between Ethiopian federal forces and Fano militia since the outbreak of fighting in Amhara in August 2023”.

HRW urged the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to launch an independent inquiry into abuses in the region.

The NGO called on the African Union to suspend all deployments of Ethiopian federal forces to peacekeeping missions until “commanders responsible for grave abuses are held accountable”.

Laetitia Bader, the group’s deputy Africa director, said: “The Ethiopian government’s failure to ensure meaningful accountability for abuses by federal and regional forces contributes to ongoing cycles of violence and impunity.”

The deliberate killing of civilians has become a “daily occurrence” for Ethiopians in conflict zones, she said.

In early February, Ethiopia’s parliament extended a state of emergency introduced in August 2023 in Amhara — the country’s second most populous region — in an attempt to quell a so-far unsuccessful Fano insurgency.

The Fanos and other Amharas felt betrayed by a peace agreement signed in November 2022 by the government and dissident leaders of the Tigray region — long-time foes of Amhara nationalists who claim parts of Ethiopia’s northernmost region as their ancestral lands.

Who Is Anton Postolnikov? Kremlin-Linked Fintech Guru 'Saved Trump Media'

Published Apr 04, 2024 
By Brendan Cole
Senior News Reporter

Donald Trump's niece, Mary Trump, is among those who have raised questions about the Russian-American businessman Anton Postolnikov, who according to The Guardian kept afloat the former president's social media company Trump Media through emergency loans.

Trump may earn billions from the merger between Trump Media and Technology Group and Digital World Acquisition Corporation, which took the parent company of Truth Social public on March 26 on the Nasdaq exchange with shares trading at a high of $78.

But a report by The Guardian about the links to the deal involving Postolnikov has sparked a strong reaction online, including from Mary Trump, who posted on X that her uncle "has shown time and again that he is willing to do business with anyone."

The Guardian said that regulators had opened a securities investigation into the merger in 2021 and that Trump Media spent a lot of money the following year as it waited for its stock market debut.

The paper said that Trump Media took emergency loans, two of which were worth $8 million, in the form of convertible promissory notes, from an entity called the ES Family Trust, which opened an account with Paxum Bank that is co-owned by Postolnikov.

Postolnikov is reportedly the nephew of Aleksandr Smirnov, a former Russian deputy minister of justice who worked in President Vladimir Putin's executive office up to 2017. Postolnikov is also the subject of a criminal investigation by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security over his role in the TMTG merger, The Guardian reported.

Newsweek has approached Postolnikov for comment via Paxum Bank.

Neither Trump nor TMTG has been accused of any wrongdoing, and there is no sign that they knew about the background to the loans. A lawyer representing Trump Media told The Guardian that it was "a false narrative that TMTG has these fake connections to Russia."

In a statement to Newsweek, TMTG said: "The Guardian's defamatory reporting on TMTG is already the subject of ongoing litigation, through which the full extent of their malicious falsehoods will become clear."

In 2017, Postolnikov faced an arrest warrant in his home city of St. Petersburg on charges of tax fraud, according to a court ruling obtained by The Washington Post in February. That warrant was lifted the following year after the direct intervention of Russia's deputy prosecutor general, who said the case was without merit, the paper said.

Paxum Bank does not have a banking license in the U.S. and is not regulated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

The Guardian said this was a concern because it could indicate the ES Family Trust had been used by Postolnikov "to loan money to help save Trump Media—and the Truth Social platform— because his bank itself could not furnish the loan."

Postolnikov has not been charged with any crime but has been listed on recent search warrant affidavits along with associates including Michael Shvartsman.

Michael Shvartsman, a Florida venture capitalist, and his brother Gerald Shvartsman pleaded guilty on Wednesday to participating in an insider trading scheme linked to the deal that took Trump's social media business public, CNN reported.

On the Russian business website executive.ru, Postolnikov is described as expert and developer of financial technologies, creating fintech projects in Russia and overseas. The profile said he was born in Russia but educated in the U.S.

It said he completed his secondary education in 1999 at the International Studies Academy in San Francisco and went on to study at Skyline College and at the College of Marin in the Bay Area.

Mary Trump, a vehement critic of her uncle, wrote on X that "the critical part of the story" isn't just that Postolnikov is the nephew of an ally of Putin but "that who invests in Truth Social is largely obscured."

"Donald has shown time and again that he is willing to do business with anyone, and take money from anyone, as long as it serves his interests," she said, adding, "it's vital for us keep a close eye on Truth Social. With such a high valuation and little profit, the company is screaming for an investigation into FEC or SEC violations."

A spokesperson for the SEC told Newsweek: "We decline comment."

Meanwhile, Olga Lautman, a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) asked on X how the SEC cleared the merger. "Do we have laws?"

Update 04/04/24, 11 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with responses from TMTG and the SEC.

"Wait, please" - IRC's New Report Sheds Light on Violation of Asylum Rights in Italy


Milan, April 4, 2024 — The new report by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) sheds light on the serious violations of basic rights that asylum seekers are facing in major Italian cities while trying to apply for international protection. Across Italy, individuals seeking asylum face prolonged waits while Immigration Offices handle their applications, or are turned away by the Police Stations, who tell them to "wait, please."

The report comes out exactly a year after the Police Headquarters and the Prefecture of Milan adopted a new online system to access the procedure for the recognition of international protection. While the digital solution was designed to alleviate barriers to accessing the asylum procedure, in practice, discriminatory practices persist.

Stuck in an asylum vacuum, people are left without proper documentation, means of living and accommodation, a limbo that can last for several months. This waiting period puts people in a vulnerable and uncertain position, highlighting the pressing need for more efficient and compassionate processing procedures to ensure timely registration and support. The sheer volume of asylum applications—13,000 filed in January 2024 alone - underscores the pressing need to act.

Susanna Zanfrini, IRC's Italy Country Director, said:

"Widespread delays or obstacles in submitting applications for international protection that we have documented across Italy represent a serious violation of fundamental rights. We argue that access to asylum remains significantly restricted, if not entirely blocked, in various parts of Italy, as the Italian government's focus leans heavily on preventing arrivals in Europe rather than bolstering the reception system.

“It's time to shift from walls to welcome. Offering dignified reception and ongoing support to those seeking refuge, regardless of their country of origin or the journey they have undertaken, is a backbone of fair and humane treatment for all."

Flaminia Delle Cese, IRC’s Legal and Advocacy Advisor in Italy, added:

"Giving people fleeing conflict, persecution, and disaster the chance to apply for international protection with dignity is not only a legal obligation but also an act of humanity. The Italian state must urgently resolve obstacles to the submission of requests for international protection and establish minimum standards so that people are properly taken care of while their claims are being assessed."


IRC IN ITALY

Present in the country since 2017, the IRC currently has 40 staff in Italy. Since January 2022 IRC Italy reached 270.526 clients responding to the needs of people seeking protection through providing direct support to clients, working with local organizations, national authorities and institutions to improve the asylum system and humanitarian conditions. Actions cover the impacted regions of Lombardy, Sicily, Lazio, Piedmont and Friuli Venezia Giulia aiming to enhance refugees’ safety, power, education, economic empowerment and mental health – with a focus on the most vulnerable, including women and unaccompanied children (UAC).

Meta’s long-standing problem with “shaheed”

An overdue ruling from the Oversight Board.

By RUSSELL BRANDOM
This article originally appeared in Exporter, a weekly newsletter covering the latest on U.S. tech giants and their impact outside the West, with Russell Brandom. 

On Tuesday, the Meta-established Oversight Board released a new ruling on how Facebook moderates the Arabic word “shaheed,” which translates roughly to “martyr.” Meta had been automatically flagging the word when applied to a person on its Dangerous Organizations and Individuals list, taking it as an inherent call to violence. When the Oversight Board case re-examining the policy was announced, “shaheed” was responsible for more content removals than any other single word or phrase.

This week’s ruling found that Meta’s policy “disproportionately restricts freedom of expression and civic discourse” — which is a long way of saying it was taking down too much content that shouldn’t have been taken down. As it tried to stop users from glorifying terrorists, the company had instead made the entire topic of political violence off-limits to Arabic speakers.

Marwa Fatafta, who directs Middle East policy at Access Now, told me Meta’s treatment of “shaheed” is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how the word is used. “It’s a word that comes from Islam, but it’s used by Arabic speakers regardless of religion,” Fatafta says. “At least in the Palestine context, you refer to anyone killed by the Israeli army as ‘shaheed’ — or anyone killed in an act of political violence.”

That could include people like Shireen Abu Akleh, the Al Jazeera reporter killed by Israeli soldiers in 2022, but it could also include Egyptian protestors killed in Tahrir Square. Given the ongoing horror in Palestine, it would be difficult to talk about any of the victims without using some version of the word.

It’s tempting to read the decision as a response to the violence in Palestine, but the opposite is true: The board announced it was tackling the case last March, and delayed the decision in the wake of the October 7 attacks. Meta had launched its review of how the word was being moderated in 2020, but the review concluded without reaching a consensus. Without some kind of outside nudge, there simply wasn’t enough political will within the company to change the rule.

Part of the problem here is a simple language issue. Overreading the meaning of an Arabic word is easier when there are fewer native speakers of the language at high levels of the company. Even after the issue was raised, it lingered unresolved — perhaps because the company’s leadership didn’t see it as a priority. Such language bias is pervasive in the tech industry, where global tools are still mostly made by English speakers, and this is a prime example.

But the problem doesn’t end there. Fatafta described the policy as “a stigmatization of Arabic populations,” and it’s hard to disagree. Throughout the West, there’s a sad tendency to see Arabic speakers as only the perpetrators of political violence, never the victims. In Meta’s case, that tendency ended up being written into moderation policy and operationalized at a massive scale. It’s the kind of de jure discrimination that the Oversight Board was founded to address. The greatest frustration is that Meta couldn’t solve this problem on its own.


Russell Brandom is the U.S. Tech Editor at Rest of World.

Jumia Food’s shutdown left hundreds of drivers jobless, unable to withdraw earnings

Former gig drivers in Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda are still feeling the pinch after Jumia Food abruptly exited seven African markets.

Tolu Owoeye/Shutterstock

By KIMBERLY MUTANDIRO
4 APRIL 2024

Gig drivers told Rest of World that they received no official notice, and many found themselves locked out of the app.

Some are either struggling to find work or have been forced to take up odd jobs.

On December 12, James Murimbi heard a rumor about Jumia Foods exiting Kenya from a group of fellow food delivery workers. But he brushed the news aside and thought they were “bluffing.”

The next day, however, he was abruptly locked out of the food delivery app that he had been working for since June 2022. Murimbi spent the following two weeks trying to reach the company to retrieve the 4,500 shillings ($34.62) he made during his final week on the job. “To date, I have not received my money,” he told Rest of World. “That small amount would have helped to at least buy food. From the time the company closed, I am still struggling.”

In December 2023, Jumia, Africa’s largest e-commerce company, said it was discontinuing its food delivery business in seven African countries: Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Tunisia, and Uganda. The move left hundreds of gig workers stranded, and many, like Murimbi, did not even get a chance to withdraw their earnings from the platform. Three months on, many of them are still struggling to find a means to make money.

Several former Jumia Food workers in Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda told Rest of World that the company’s exit has left an oversupply of manpower, and they are being forced to take up odd jobs like working at construction sites and running market stalls.

“I am jobless right now, and my two years of working with the app went down the drain,” Robert, a former Jumia Food worker in Nairobi, told Rest of World, requesting to be identified only by his first name to avoid jeopardizing future job opportunities. He said he had no savings to sustain himself, as the gig at Jumia Food paid little. Robert added that he has applied for work at Glovo, but nothing has worked out because the platform is already congested with drivers.

Jumia did not respond to any requests for comment.

In December, Jumia said it was downsizing its food delivery business because it did not align with the company’s strategy, and the macroeconomic conditions in the seven markets were problematic. But just months before it shut shop, the company went to colleges in Lagos to woo students to work part-time on its platform, Johnson Emmanuel, a student at Livingstone College, told Rest of World.

Emmanuel joined the platform in November 2023 after being promised good earnings. Within a month, though, the app pulled out of the market. “Lots of us never got our final payment,” Emmanuel said. “Things were not easy for me during the first few months after the company closed down.” He managed to join Glovo in early March.

“I sweated and wasted all my energy and effort riding a bike for nothing.”

Several former Jumia Food workers said they were worst hit because the company did not give them any warning before shutting down.

Israel Oloba, another student in Lagos, said he had 35,000 naira ($26.12) on the app that he never received. “I sweated and wasted all my energy and effort riding a bike for nothing,” Oloba told Rest of World. Oloba now works with a local food delivery company called Chowdeck.

Uche Okafor, a former regional manager for Bolt, believes this incident demonstrates both the down- and upsides of gig work. “There is potential instability in the gig economy, where workers can face sudden job losses,” Okafor told Rest of World. “[But] while some drivers [in Nigeria] may experience temporary financial strain due to job changes, the booming food and package delivery startup scene offers them a wealth of new opportunities.”

Kenyan labor rights activist Angela Chukunzira said this could be an opportunity for African unions to push for regulation and better working conditions for gig workers. “This is an opportunity to re-create, re-define, and even modernize worker unions in the midst of increasing globalized labor relations,” she told Rest of World.

Kimberly Mutandiro is a Labor x Tech reporting fellow at Rest of World based in Johannesburg, South Africa.

China played 'pivotal role' in promotion of Buddhism globally: Top Chinese Buddhist monk

PTI |
Apr 04, 2024

Beijing, China has held a major conference of influential Asian Buddhist monks where its top monk has affirmed that Beijing has played a “pivotal role” in the promotion of Buddhism globallyHT Image

The conference on Buddhism was part of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference held in Boao, Hainan province in the last week of March.

In this year’s forum, the Chinese Buddhist monks held an interactive session organised for the first time with their counterparts from Sri Lanka, Nepal, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia and South Korea, according to a report from the official media here.

At the conference organised by the Chinese think tank, there was no representation from India, from where Buddhism came to China in 68 AD.

In recent decades, the ruling Communist Party of China has permitted the Sinicised or Chinese version of Buddhism to be practised at home after the crackdown on Buddhist temples during its founder leader Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976 aimed at purging remnants of capitalists and traditional elements from the society.

Beijing also seeks to project it globally as part of its efforts to tap into Buddhism’s global influence.

Speaking at the meeting in Boao, Yan Jue, president of the Buddhist Association of China said "Chinese Buddhists have, through the large-scale translation of scriptures, elucidation of Buddhist thought, establishment of sects, institutional innovation and cultural integration, embodied the original intention of the Buddha, inherited the essence of Buddhism, enhanced the compatibility of Buddhism with East Asian cultures, civilisations, societies and people, and promoted the spread of Buddhism to countries such as Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam".

His deputy Yin Shun said China played a “pivotal role” in promoting the religion globally, state-run China Daily reported this week.

"Buddhism, followed by a significant portion of Asia, is the oldest religious tradition advocating peace”, he said.

“When Buddhism was introduced to China, it integrated with native Confucian and Taoist philosophies, creating a uniquely Chinese form of Buddhism. This tradition spread to Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, Europe, the Americas and beyond, becoming an influential force in promoting global peace. Throughout history and today, China has played a pivotal role in the spread of Buddhism," he said.

China as part of its promotion of Buddhism made Sanskrit and Buddhist studies as part of academic courses in its prominent universities.

Sanskrit studies in China are on the upswing, over 2000 years after the ancient Indian language came to the country along with Buddhism, according to Wang Bangwei, a well-known Chinese scholar in Sanskrit and Director of Sino-Indian Buddhist studies, Institute of Oriental and Indian Studies of Peking University a senior Professor of Peking University.

The Indian Buddhist monk Kumarajiva was instrumental in translating Buddhist sutras into Chinese language during his stay in China over 2000 years ago and earned the royal title of “National Teacher of China”.

He was the first among the numerous scholars who laid a firm foundation for civilisational links between the two countries, scholars from both countries said here.

The Sanskrit tradition and its development were kept alive by numerous Chinese scholars like Fa Xian and Xuan Zang and others who visited India.

EPA awards $20 billion in green bank grants for clean energy projects nationwide




BY ALEXA ST. JOHN
April 4, 2024

DETROIT (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday awarded $20 billion in federal green bank grants to eight community development banks and nonprofit organizations to use on projects combating climate change in disadvantaged communities and helping Americans save money and reduce their carbon footprints.

The money could fund tens of thousands of eligible projects ranging from residential heat pumps and other energy-efficient home improvements to larger-scale projects such as electric vehicle charging stations and community cooling centers.

“We have the capacity with this approach to empower communities to decide which projects they want that will have the greatest impact from their perspective in the place they call home,” said Vice President Kamala Harris, who traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina to unveil the funding.

It was Harris’ fourth trip to the battleground state this year as Democrats hope to win a state that they narrowly lost to Republican Donald Trump in the last presidential election.

In a local radio interview conducted before her trip, Harris said North Carolina will “really help determine the outcome of who will occupy the White House for the next four years. And this election, we’ve got everything on the line.”

The green bank that oversees the grants announced Thursday was created by Biden’s landmark climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022.

Formally known as the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, the $27 billion bank is one of many federal efforts to invest in solutions that cut planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions and address human-caused climate change, a topic President Joe Biden has emphasized in his presidency and Democratic reelection campaign.

The bank’s goals are to reduce climate and air pollution and mobilize public and private capital in the communities that need it most.

“While every community has the capacity to join the clean energy economy, not every community has had the opportunity to do that,” Harris said.

Before her speech at a community center, Harris joined Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan at a home in the Grier Heights neighborhood that had taken advantage of financing opportunities to become more energy efficient.

Harris told the homeowner that she hopes others “will see for themselves what is possible for them and their families.:

As part of Thursday’s news, the $14 billion National Clean Investment Fund program granted money to three nonprofits that will partner with states and the private sector to provide affordable financing for projects across the country.

The $6 billion Clean Communities Investment Accelerator also granted money to five institutions that will work with other groups to establish hubs that make funding and technical assistance accessible to community lenders.

Recipients committed to spending $7 in private sector funding for each $1 from the federal investment money, to “reduce or avoid” 40 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year and earmark 70% of the money for disadvantaged and low-income communities. These groups are often passed over by commercial banks and investors yet are disproportionately impacted by climate change.

Among the eight funding recipients are:

—Coalition for Green Capital, a nonprofit working with a nationwide network of state, local, and nonprofit green banks, received $5 billion.

—Power Forward Communities, a nonprofit coalition formed by five housing, climate, and community investment groups, received $2 billion.

—Appalachian Community Capital, a nonprofit community development financial institution working with lenders in Appalachia, received $500 million.

Also part of the bank is the $7 billion Solar for All program, which will award states, tribes and municipalities money for a variety of residential and community solar projects at a later date.

Specifics around the bank were outlined last February, with applications for the programs sought in July and due last fall.

“I do think this is a really important part of our national strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and engage every community in the clean energy revolution,” Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen told The Associated Press in an interview. The Democrat first introduced legislation to create a national green bank 15 years ago. “Now we just need to work very hard on implementation,” he said.

But the taxpayer-funded green bank has also faced opposition, notably from Republicans in Congress, who have called it a “slush fund” and voiced concern over accountability and transparency on how the money is used. House Republicans passed a bill last month to repeal the bank and other parts of the president’s climate agenda.

At the state level, Connecticut’s Green Bank and others have been successful in tracking the impact of their programs.

Through the national program, projects included could be larger, make more money and be more impactful.

“The scale envisioned for these entities could model successful state green banks while supercharging the number of communities served,” Katherine Hamilton, chair of public policy firm 38 North Solutions and who worked on underlying legislation for the fund, said in an email. She said that would help the country move “more quickly through the energy transition.”
___

Associated Press writer Chris Megerian contributed to this report from Washington.
___

Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate solutions reporter. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter, @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ast.john@ap.org.
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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Russia's Novatek may scale back Arctic LNG 2, focus on Murmansk, sources say

A concrete gravity-based structure (GBS) of Arctic LNG 2 joint venture is seen under construction in a dry dock of the LNG Construction center near the settlement of Belokamenka, Murmansk region, Russia 

APR 04, 2024

MOSCOW - Russia's Novatek is being forced to scale back its huge Arctic LNG 2 project after Western sanctions curbed its access to ice-class tankers, and will focus instead on developing its project at the ice-free port of Murmansk, industry sources said.

Russia has been focusing on developing global sales of seaborne LNG to make up for a drop in pipeline gas exports to Europe, which have plummeted to post-Soviet lows amid a severe rift with the West over Ukraine.

The possible scaling back of the Arctic LNG 2 plant in the Gydan peninsular would complicate Moscow's goal to boost its share of the global LNG market to a fifth by 2030-2035 from around 8% currently.

The project had been due to become Russia's largest such plant with eventual output of 19.8 million metric tons per year of LNG and 1.6 million tons per year of stable gas condensate from three trains.

Novatek did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on its plans.

The company began liquefied natural gas (LNG) production at Arctic LNG 2's first train in December, but has been behind schedule in supplying its first cargoes of super-cooled gas from the project amid shortages of ice-class gas carriers.

Sources have said the conversion of methane into a liquid at a temperature of minus 163 Celsius (minus 261 Fahrenheit) has now been suspended at the plant.

Its second and third lines were due to begin operations in 2024 and 2026 respectively, with its second production train currently being built at a plant in Belokamenka in the Murmansk region.

However, the third train could be used instead at the Murmansk LNG plant announced by Novatek last June.

"An option is being considered is to send a second gravity platform for Arctic LNG-2 in the summer, and to use a third one for Murmansk LNG," a source familiar with the plans said.

The Murmansk LNG project is slated to be even larger than Arctic LNG 2, with eventual output of 20.4 million tons per year. It is projected to start production at its first two trains by the end of 2027, with a last line scheduled to start operations in 2029.

One of the advantages of the Murmansk project in comparison to Arctic LNG 2 would be its access to the ice-free port in the Barents Sea.

"All attention now is on Murmansk, the ice-class tankers are not necessary there," a source said.

The plans for Arctic LNG 2 were complicated last year when it was included in Western sanctions over Russia's conflict in Ukraine, prompting foreign shareholders to freeze participation and Novatek to issue a force majeure.

Novatek has also failed to secure enough ice-class gas carriers as foreign partners were scared off by sanctions.

The head of Arctic LNG 2 stakeholder TotalEnergies said in February that the project's third train had been put on hold but the second train was likely to be installed. REUTERS